Meduza published a massive profile of Shuvalov, with a particular focus on his work in government, which is hardly surprising—our protagonist has been a state official since 1997, for 19 years.
And the most important part of the article:
Those same businessmen (Mamut and Usmanov — A.N.) helped Igor Shuvalov get a job in 1997 at the State Property Committee, the agency responsible for privatizing state assets. “Back then, everything was interconnected—the state and business alike, and by that point Shuvalov was already a dollar millionaire and wanted to apply himself in a different role,” a Meduza source familiar with Shuvalov says.
An influential Russian businessman acquainted with Shuvalov told Meduza that he estimated Shuvalov’s current wealth at “at least $2–3 billion”.
So much for public service. From a few million to “two or three billion,” putting this “civil servant” alongside the richest people on the planet.
So once again: let’s put an end to this line about “he’s legally rich, so of course he can fly on a private jet.”
Shuvalov is not “legally rich” but a thief and a corrupt official who legalized part of what was stolen through some fairly scandalous schemes:
A person in public service cannot become a billionaire; if they can, then something is very wrong both with that person and with the public service itself.